Ana Gives 2003 Storm Season An Early Start

The first storm of the 2003 hurricane season -- a subtropical storm named Ana -- unexpectedly formed in the Atlantic Ocean late Sunday night, more than a month before the season's official start.

On Monday, Ana was about 500 miles off the U.S. East Coast, passing 185 miles southeast of Bermuda at about 12 mph.

The relatively weak system isn't expected to strengthen into a hurricane or make it to the U.S. coastline, said Miles Lawrence, a forecaster at the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

"Hurricane season runs June through November, and outside of it the conditions aren't right for tropical systems to form, except for those rare occasions when they are right," Lawrence said. "This is one of those times."

Almost all hurricanes and tropical systems have historically formed between June and November, with September, on average, being the busiest.

But over the last century, each out-of-season month has produced at least one subtropical storm, tropical storm or hurricane.

Subtropical storms are similar to tropical storms, but form in different ways and are typically less intense and short lived, said William Gray, a hurricane expert at Colorado State University.

"It's a freak and oddball, this one. It probably won't last, and its impact will be minimal," he said.

Exactly 11 years ago on Monday, an unnamed subtropical storm kicked off the 1992 season, only to diminish in the Atlantic three days later.

In August of that year, Hurricane Andrew pounded south Dade County.

With maximum sustained winds of about 40 mph, Ana was barely strong enough to be classified as a subtropical storm.